Greenwood students sharpen minds through chess club
Since they were first played thousands of years ago, board games have been an important part of society and culture. They have been a way for people to pass the time, learn about strategy and bond with their peers. And while board games continue to change and even be affected by the introduction of modern technology, there are a few games within their ranks that never go out of style.
For the past year, a small group of high school students at the Greenwood School District have gathered during the last hour of their school day in Stephanie Glaser’s English classroom to play chess. Using boards that were donated by community members, the kids have been passing the final hours of their day having fun with each other and learning about strategy.
“Last year we had a student that got interested in playing chess,” said Glaser. “He wanted to find an easier way to find people to play chess with and asked for my room to be the home of that. We got some chess boards donated from members of the community and went from there.”
That student who started it all was senior Angel Anderson. He started playing chess during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic while the schools were still in lockdown. With nothing else to do, he said he was attracted to the game and took the time to learn how to play.
“I guess I started playing chess when COVID happened,” he said. “I had seen some videos about it online and it sounded interesting to learn. I had wanted to play chess when I was younger, and now I had the opportunity to learn how to play it.”
Right now, Glaser said the gathering of the students at the end of the day is a rather informal affair. Those students whose work is completed spend the time in one-on-one matches, games in which a more experienced player teaches a newer opponent, and even games observed and commented on by bystanders. It’s a group that changes what it does to cater to those interested in playing that day.
“It’s pretty informal,” said Glaser. “Students come and have a number of chess boards they can use to play. I think it’s pretty cool; the new students can learn to play chess from the other players, and sometimes the games are a little more competitive as the students learn from each other. You will also have a lot of games where two people are playing and there will be two others observing and learning.”
There are many aspects of playing chess together that the students have enjoyed. For freshman Canon Madison, the camaraderie he gets from hanging out with his peers and playing a game in a physical environment is important.
“I think it’s amazing how people are finding out how good of a game it is,” he said. “It’s a new wave of people learning about it. I think it’s a lot easier for people to learn and practice on a physical board than trying to play online... this is something that we are growing and doing together and we are learning together. There is always room for improvement.”
That “room for improvement” came as a bit of a shock for Anderson as he learned how to play chess.
“It was interesting to learn just how deep the stuff can get,” he said. “There’s a lot that goes into each move and finishing moves. This is something that everyone can play and it’s brought us together.”
Glaser said the introduction of the chess club has gone a long way in teaching many of the students critical thinking skills and how to learn on their own -- skills they will never lose. “This game is dependent on strategy and critical thinking,” she said. “They also have a lot of learning that they have been doing on their own and bringing back to the rest of the group to share and teach. These are skills that will stay with them even after they graduate.” For the group’s next move, Glaser said the students were to attend a chess tournament over the March 18-19 weekend for the first time. By attending, she said the students will get a better idea of what direction they want to take their club, whether that means remaining as they are right now or moving in the direction of more serious competition. “It’s pretty exciting,” she said. “We will get a chance to see what competing in a tournament would actually look like. They will get a chance to see more experienced players and the moves they will use in certain scenarios. That is our next step, to find out if we want to compete in chess. There are competitions around and if we wanted to do that, we could do it. We just have to see if that is something they are interested in or not.”
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
